1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having improved color reproducibility and processing stability and more particularly relates to a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material that has these properties and is used for cinema.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is always a need for raising the image quality of a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material that is used for viewing, recording, and preserving images, and therefore much research has been carried out. Examples of the method of raising the image quality of a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material include the following methods.
(1) Enhancement of image sharpness by such means as the use of an irradiation-preventing dye, reduction of the thickness of a hydrophilic colloid layer coated on a support, and formation of a colored layer for the prevention of halation;
(2) Improvement of granularity by the reduction of the sizes of photosensitive silver halide particles or by controlling the shape of dye clouds to be formed;
(3) Enhancement of color reproducibility by the employment of a dye-forming coupler capable of providing excellent spectral absorption characteristics of the coloring dye to be obtained;
(4) Prevention of unnecessary coloration in processed photosensitive materials by a design in which coloring materials such as dyes, sensitizing dyes, and the like are easily decolorized in processing; and
(5) Prevention of discoloration and fading by such means as the use of a dye-forming coupler providing a coloring dye having excellent colorfastness and the use of a compound capable of raising the colorfastness of the dye.
Among the properties described above, image sharpness, together with granularity, are important properties in a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material, which may be enlarged when it is viewed or when it is transferred to a material for viewing, or in a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material which needs to be enlarged in order to be viewed, such as a print material for cinema. Further, in images containing character information and illustrations such as those seen in images for use in commercials, the image sharpness of the material displaying such character information and illustrations determines the impression of the entire images. Accordingly, the enhancement of image sharpness is very important to the enhancement of image qualities.
As stated above, the prevention of halation and irradiation is effective as a means of enhancing the image sharpness. As a means of preventing halation and irradiation, the coloring of the hydrophilic colloid layer with a water-soluble dye has been employed. Examples of such dyes include oxonol dyes described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,933 and other dyes such as azo dyes, anthraquinone dyes, allylidene dyes, styryl dyes, triarylmethane dyes, merocyanine dyes, and cyanine dyes. When these dyes are coated on a photosensitive material, these dyes are diffused into the entire layer of the photosensitive material, and therefore these dyes are effective in the prevention of irradiation. However, for the prevention of halation, by taking into account the amount of the dye that will be diffused into other layers, a large amount of the dye needs to be added. Such a large amount of the dye will easily bring about photographic problems such as the sensitivity reduction due to the absorption of the dye thus added and the increase of the coloring of the white background due to the residual color of the dye. Accordingly, the formation of a non-diffusive colored layer is necessary for the effective prevention of halation.
Examples hitherto known as the methods of forming a non-diffusive colored layer are a method in which colloidal silver is incorporated in a specific non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer and a method in which a support having a hydrophilic resin layer having fine carbon black particles dispersed therein is used. However, in principle the former cannot be used in a system in which information is recorded by means of the silver formed by development (e.g., a black-and-white photographic photosensitive material or a print material for cinema having sound tracks). On the other hand, the latter needs the removal of the colored layer at the time of image formation and thus increases the number of the steps required for the development processing. This presents a problem that the latter method contradicts the current trend of the simplification of the development processing.
As other methods free from the problems described above, there have been proposed a method in which the hydrophilic colloid layer is selectively colored by use of a polymeric mordant and a method in which a dispersion of solid particles of a dye is used.
However, these methods were also associated with a problem that, when a dye in an amount necessary for the enhancement of image sharpness was added, the reduction in the leaching rate of the dye at the time of development could not be avoided. Therefore, it was difficult to achieve the two properties of images, i.e., image sharpness and prevention of the coloring of the white background, at the same time. Because of this, there has been a search for a dye, which tends to remain in as a dispersion of solid particles in a hydrophilic colloid layer and tends to be easily leached out or decolorized at the time of processing. In this regard, dyes such as those described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2-282244 have been proposed.
On the other hand, the improvement of color reproducibility is also an effective means of raising the image quality of a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material. In a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material, it is well known that a color developing agent based on aromatic primary amine, being oxidized by the silver halide exposed to light and thereafter acting as an oxidizing agent, reacts with a coupler to thereby produce a dye such as indophenol, indoaniline, indamine, azomethine, phenoxazine, or phenazine, and an image is formed. In this photographic process, a subtractive process is employed and color images are formed by yellow, magenta, and cyan dyes. Also in this field, continuous efforts have been made to develop a coupler capable of forming a dye having a higher chromatic level in order to raise the color reproducibility.
Among these couplers, a pivaloylacetanilide-type coupler or a benzoylacetanilide-type coupler has been mostly used for the formation of yellow images. The former provides a dye having a desirable absorption as a yellow dye, but a large amount of the coupler is required in order to obtain a necessary density because the molecular absorption coefficient of the coloring dye is low. The latter provides a dye having a fairly long spectral absorption wavelength as a yellow dye and therefore the latter is inferior to the former in terms of color reproducibility, although the necessary density can be achieved with a relatively small amount of the latter coupler because the molecular absorption coefficient of the dye obtained is high. Therefore a need exists for putting a coupler, which has the advantages of these two couplers, to practical use.
Meanwhile, from a viewpoint other than that of raising image qualities, research for simplifying the handling have also been conducted. Typical of this research is research for the simplification of the development processing. As to the speeding up of the development processing, although various methods have been proposed which approach this from the photosensitive material side, the main research can be summarized into the following two:
(1) Speeding up the development
(2) Speeding up the removal of unnecessary components.
Typical examples of the former is the development of a silver halide emulsion having a higher proportion of silver chloride and the development of a coupler having a higher activity. Regarding the latter, the bleach-fixing speed has been increased and the development of a dye that is easily decolorized has been made as stated previously.
As another approach, the improvement of processing methods has also been studied. A typical example is increasing the transfer speed of photosensitive materials in a development processing apparatus. According to this method, although the time required for the processing of the first photosensitive material does not change, the number of photosensitive materials to be processed in a unit of time increases for the second photosensitive material and those thereafter. That is, the efficiency at the time when a large amount of the photosensitive material is processed, is raised. In addition, when this method is applied to a roll film, the length of the photosensitive material to be processed in a unit of time is increased. Because of this, this method is used as a standard method for raising the efficiency in fields where a long roll film, such as a photosensitive material for cinema is processed. In such processing, the photosensitive material is exposed to a very large physical stress in comparison with the photosensitive material in ordinary processing. Accordingly, the enhancement of the film strength at the time of processing is pointed out as an important property, in addition to the above-described two items when speeding up the development processing is approached from the photosensitive material side.
The present inventors were conducting the research on a yellow coupler from the viewpoint of enhancing color reproducibility. In the process of the research, they found that an acetanilide-type yellow coupler having a carbonyl group linked directly to a nitrogen-containing heterocycle has the above-mentioned properties which are ideal for a yellow coupler. They found that, by combining this yellow coupler with an antihalation layer composed of a dispersion of solid particles of a specific dye, and also by the thickness of the layer being reduced due to the high molecular absorption coefficient of the dye to be obtained from the coupler, it becomes possible to prepare a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having excellent color reproducibility and white background free from coloration.
However, it was found that the film strength of the silver halide color photographic photosensitive material prepared according to the technique described above was reduced.
Particularly, the film strength in water which is an important property at the time of the development processing was reduced.
It is accordingly the task of the present invention to solve the problems in the prior art and to achieve the following objects.
That is, the first object of the present invention is to provide a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having a good image quality, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material for cinema in particular.
The second object of the present invention is to provide a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material having a higher color reproducibility and excellent image sharpness, in particular, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material for cinema.
The third object of the present invention is to provide a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material, which has sufficient density of developed color, color reproducibility, and excellent image sharpness and which has improved physical strength of film, in particular, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material for cinema.
The fourth object of the present invention is to provide a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material, which matches high-efficiency processing as a result of improvement of the film strength thereof particularly the film strength in water, in particular, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material for cinema.
The first aspect as a means for solving the problems described above is as follows.
That is, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material comprising a support having thereon at least one yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one cyan-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one magenta-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, and at least one non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, wherein the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer contains at least one dye-forming coupler represented by the following general formula (Y-1), the weight ratio of the weight of the components insoluble in water but soluble in an organic solvent to the dry weight of the hydrophilic colloid in the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer is 0.75 or less, and at least one layer of the non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layers contains a dispersion of solid particles of a dye represented by the following general formula [I]: 
wherein Y represents a nitrogen-containing heterocycle; z represents a substituted aryl group; X represents a hydrogen atom, or a group that leaves by the reaction with an oxidized form of a developing solution:
General formula (I)
D"Parenopenst"X)y 
wherein D represents a residue of a compound having a chromophoric group; X represents a dissociative hydrogen atom or a group having a dissociative hydrogen atom; and y is an integer of 1 to 7.
The second aspect as a means for solving the problems described above is as follows. That is, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material comprising a support having thereon at least one yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one cyan-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one magenta-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, and at least one non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, wherein the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer contains at least one dye-forming coupler represented by the following general formula (Y-1), the weight ratio of the weight of the components insoluble in water but soluble in an organic solvent to the dry weight of the hydrophilic colloid in the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer is 0.75 or less, and at least one layer of the non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layers contains a dispersion of solid particles of a dye represented by the following general formula [II]: 
wherein Y represents a nitrogen-containing heterocycle; Z represents a substituted aryl group; X represents a hydrogen atom, or a group that leaves by the reaction with an oxidized form of a developing solution:
General formula (II)
A1xe2x95x90L1"Parenopenst"L2xe2x95x90L3"Parenclosest"mQ 
wherein A1 represents an acidic nucleus, Q represents an aryl group or a heterocyclic group; L1, L2, and L3 each represents a methine group; and m represents 0, 1, or 2, with the proviso that the dye represented by the general formula [II] described above has in the molecule thereof 1 to 7 carboxyl groups.
The third aspect as a means for solving the problems above described is as follows. That is, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material comprising a support having thereon at least one yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one cyan-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, at least one magenta-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, and at least one non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layer, wherein the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer contains at least one dye-forming coupler represented by the following general formula (Y-1), the weight ratio of the weight of the components insoluble in water but soluble in an organic solvent to the dry weight of the hydrophilic colloid in the yellow-developing photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer is 0.75 or less, and at least one layer of the non-photosensitive hydrophilic colloid layers contains a dispersion of solid particles of a dye represented by the following general formula [III]. 
wherein Y represents a nitrogen-containing heterocycle; z represents a substituted aryl group; X represents a hydrogen atom, or a group that leaves by the reaction with an oxidized form of a developing solution.
General formula (III)
A1xe2x95x90L1"Parenopenst"L2xe2x95x90L3"Parenclosest"nA2 
wherein A1 and A2 each represents an acidic nucleus; L1, L2, and L3 each represents a methine group; and n represents 1, or 2, with the proviso that the dye represented by the general formula [III] described above has in the molecule thereof 1 to 7 carboxyl groups.
The details of the silver halide color photographic photosensitive material of the present invention are explained below.
First, the dye-forming coupler represented by the following general formula (Y-1) is described.
In the general formula (Y-1), Y represents a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group. The heterocyclic group is a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group which has at least one nitrogen atom as a constituent of the ring and which comprises preferably a nitrogen atom, an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom, and a carbon atom as a constituent of the ring (i.e., an atom constituting the ring itself and therefore a hydrogen atom or a substituent, if any, is not considered a constituent of the ring).
The nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group may have a substituent, and may be fused with a benzene ring, an aliphatic ring, a heterocycle, or the like. The number of ring members is preferably 3 to 8, more preferably 5 to 6, and particularly preferably 5. If the heterocycle is fused with a benzene ring, an aliphatic ring, a heterocycle, or the like, the portion which is joined with the heterocycle is not counted as a ring member.
The ring portion of the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group may be a saturated ring or an unsaturated ring. In the case where the ring portion of the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group is an unsaturated ring, the ring portion may be an aromatic ring. The ring portion is preferably a saturated ring or an aromatic ring (heterocyclo-aromatic ring) and more preferably an aromatic ring (heterocyclo-aromatic ring). Among these rings, a 5-membered aromatic ring (heterocyclo-aromatic ring) is particularly preferable.
The number of the carbon atoms of the nitrogen-containing heterocycle described above is preferably 0 to 60, more preferably 1 to 50, and particularly preferable is 3 to 40. The constituent atoms are selected preferably from a nitrogen atom and a carbon atom. In that case, the number of the nitrogen atom is preferably 1 to 2.
Examples of the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group include a 1-pyrrolidinyl group, a 1-pyrrolyl group, a 2-pyrrolyl group, a pyrrolyl group, an imidazolyl group, a 1-imidazolyl group, a pyrazolyl group, a 3-, 4-, or 5-pyrazolyl group, an indolizinyl group, a benzimidazolyl group, an indolinyl group, an indolyl group, a 2-indolyl group, a 3-indolyl group, and so on.
Among these groups, a 1-pyrrolyl group, a 2-pyrrolyl group, a pyrrolyl group, a benzimidazolyl group, a 1-H-indazolyl group, an indolinyl group, an indolyl group, a 2-indolyl group, and a 3-indolyl group are preferable; a 2-pyrrolyl group, a pyrrolyl group, an indolinyl group, a 2-indolyl group, and a 3-indolyl group are more preferable; a pyrrolyl group and a 3-indolyl group are further preferable; and a 3-indolyl group is particularly preferable.
Specific examples of the substituents that may be linked to the nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group described above include a halogen atom (e.g., a chlorine, bromine, or fluorine atom), an alkyl group (an alkyl group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a methyl, ethyl, propyl, iso-butyl, t-butyl, t-octyl, 1-ethylhexyl, nonyl, cyclohexyl, undecyl, pentadecyl, n-hexadecyl, or 3-decanamidepropyl group), an alkenyl group (an alkenyl group having 2 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a vinyl, allyl, or oleyl group), a cycloalkyl group (a cycloalkyl group having 5 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a cyclopentyl, cyclohexyl, 4-t-butylcyclohexyl, 1-indanyl, or cyclododecyl group), an aryl group (an aryl group having 6 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a phenyl, p-tolyl, or naphthyl group), an acylamino group (an acylamino group having 2 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., an acetylamino, n-butaneamido, octanoylamino, 2-hexyldecaneamido, 2-(2xe2x80x2,4xe2x80x2-di-t-amylphenoxy)butaneamido, benzoylamino, or nicotineamido group), a sulfonamide group (a sulfonamide group having 1 to 60 carbon atom, e.g., a methanesulfonamide, octanesulfonamide, or benzenesulfoneamide group), a ureido group (a ureido group having 2 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a decylaminocarbonylamino or di-n-octylaminocarbonylamino group)
a urethane group (a urethane group having 2 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a dodecyloxycarbonylamino, phenoxycarbonylamino, or 2-ethylhexyloxycarbonylamino group), an alkoxy group (an alkoxy group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a methoxy, ethoxy, butoxy, n-octyloxy, hexadecyloxy, or methoxyethoxy group), an aryloxy group (an aryloxy group having 6 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a phenoxy, 2,4-di-t-amylphenoxy, 4-t-octylphenoxy, or naphthoxy group), an alkylthio groups (an alkylthio group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a methylthio, ethylthio, butylthio, or hexadecylthio group), an arylthio group (an arylthio group having 6 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a phenylthio or 4-dodecyloxyphenylthio group), an acyl group (an acyl group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., an acetyl, benzoyl, butanoyl, or dodecanoyl group), a sulfonyl group (a sulfonyl group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a methanesulfonyl, butanesulfonyl, or toluenesulfonyl group), a cyano group, a carbamoyl group (a carbamoyl group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., an N,N-dicyclohexylcarbamoyl group),
a sulfamoyl group (a sulfamoyl group having 0 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., an N,N-dimethylsulfamoyl group), a hydroxyl group, a sulfo group, a carboxyl group, a nitro group, an alkylamino group (an alkylamino group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a methylamino, diethylamino, octylamino, or octadecylamino group), an arylamino group (an arylamino group having 6 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a phenylamino, naphthylamino, or N-methyl-N-phenylamino group), a heterocyclic group (a heterocyclic group which has 0 to 60 carbon atoms and has as a ring-constituting heteroatom, an atom selected preferably from a nitrogen atom, an oxygen atom, and a sulfur atom and which more preferably has a carbon atom in addition to the heteroatom as a constituent of the ring and which is preferably a 3- to 8-membered ring, more preferably a 5- to 6-membered ring, and is, for example, a group previously indicated as an example of Y), an acyloxy group (an acyloxy group having 1 to 60 carbon atoms, e.g., a formyloxy, acetyloxy, myristoyloxy, or benzoyloxy group), and so on.
In the groups listed above, the alkyl group, the cycloalkyl group, the aryl group, the acylamino group, the ureido group, the urethane group, the alkoxy group, the aryloxy group, the alkylthio group, the arylthio group, the acyl group, the sulfonyl group, the cyano group, the carbamoyl group, and the sulfamoyl group include those having a substituent. Examples of the substituent include an alkyl group, a cycloalkyl group, an aryl group, an acylamino group, a ureido group, a urethane group, an alkoxy group, an aryloxy group, an alkylthio group, an arylthio group, an acyl group, a sulfonyl group, a cyano group, a carbamoyl group, a sulfamoyl group, and so on.
Among these substituents, an alkyl group, an aryl group, a carbamoyl group, a sulfamoyl group, an alkoxycarbamoyl group, an acylamino group, a sulfonamide group, and a cyano group are preferable.
In the general formula (Y-1), X represents a hydrogen atom or a group that leaves as a result of reacting with an oxidized form of a developing agent. Examples of the group include a halogen atom (e.g., a fluorine, chlorine, or bromine atom), an alkoxy group (e.g., an ethoxy, methoxycarbonylmethoxy, carbonylpropyloxy, methanesulfonylethoxy, or perfluoropropoxy group), an aryloxy group (e.g., a 4-carboxyphenoxy, 4-(4-hydroxyphenylsulfonyl) phenoxy, 4-methanesulfonyl-3-carboxyphenoxy, or 2-methanesulfonyl-4-acetylsulfamoylphenoxy group), an acyloxy group (e.g., an acetoxy or benzoyloxy group), a sulfonyloxy group (e.g., a methanesulfonyloxy or benzenesulfonyloxy group), an acylamino group (e.g., a heptafluorobutylylamino group), a sulfonamide group (e.g., a methanesulfonamide group), an alkoxycarbonyloxy group (e.g., an ethoxycarbonyloxy group), a carbamoyloxy group (e.g., a diethylcarbamoyloxy, piperidinocarbamoyloxy, or morpholinocarbamoyloxy group),
an alkylthio groups (e.g., a 2-carboxyethylthio group), an arylthio group (e.g., a 2-octyloxy-5-t-octylphenylthio or 2-(2,4-di-t-amylphenoxy)butylylaminophenylthio group), a heterocyclothio group (e.g., 1-phenyltetrazolylthio or 2-benzimidazolylthio group), a heterocycloxy group (e.g., 2-pyridyloxy or 5-nitro-pyridyloxy group), a 5- or 6-membered, nitrogen-containing heterocyclic group (e.g., a 1-triazolyl, 1-imidazolyl, 1-pyrazolyl, 5-chloro-1-tetrazolyl, 1-benzotriazolyl, 2-phenylcarbamoyl-1-imidazolyl, 5,5-dimethylhydantoin-3-yl, 1-benzylhydantoin-3-yl, 5,5-dimethyloxazoline-2,4-dione-3-yl, or 7-purinyl group), an azo group (e.g., 4-methoxyphenylazo or 4-pivaloylaminophenylazo group), and so on.
Alternatively, X may be a leaving group which has a timing function and can liberate a photographic reagent such as a development inhibitor or a development accelerator by an electron transfer via the leaving group or by an intramolecular nucleophilic reaction after leaving.
In the general formula (Y-1), Z represents a substituted aryl group and preferably has 6 to 60 carbon atoms. Examples of the substituent of the aryl group include those groups listed as the substituents that may be linked to Y described previously. Preferred examples of the substituent are halogen atoms, alkyl groups, aryl groups, carbamoyl groups, sulfamoyl groups, alkoxycarbonyl groups, acylamino groups, sulfonamide groups, sulfonyl groups, alkoxy groups, and aryloxy groups.
As a substituent of Z, most preferable is a phenyl group having at least in a 2-position thereof a halogen substituent or an alkoxy substituent (the phenyl group may further have substituents in 3- to 6-positions and it is particularly preferable that is has a substituent in a 5-position).
The coupler, which is represented by the general formula (Y-1) and is preferably used in the present invention, may form a dimer or a polymer, or alternatively, may be linked to a polymer chain via Y or Z. Examples of the couplers [(1) to (39)], which are represented by the general formula (Y-1) and are preferably used in the present invention, are given below. However, it should be noted that the present invention is not limited to these couplers. 
The couplers of the present invention can be synthesized by the methods described in EP Laid-Open Patent Application Nos. 953,871, 953,873, 953,874, etc. One of these examples is described below.